Dawns boyfriend Lee.

I figured it was simply a play on the cliche of how nice women always go for horrible men. Lack of self-esteem and whatnot, believing that this is what they deserve. The only time I didn't feel sorry for her was during series two, when Tim got a girlfriend. I kept thinking "quit acting jealous, you could have had a shot with him, and you effed up". Then I remembered it was a TV show, and laughed.

Also, we don't know much about their history, so at one point he may have been a really great guy, but working a blue collar job around a bunch of jerks might have made him a jerk as well. But I doubt it.

Yeah, at least Roy wasn't quite as big a jerk to Pam in the American version.

I get the feeling maybe Dawn had been dating Lee since they were teenagers or maybe since before they hit their 20's. Lee was probably the cool popular guy around town, the bad boy. Dawn been of that age when a lot of young women only care about looks and how popular someone is probably fell for Lee's B.S. As she got older, she probably started to outgrow Lee and see what he really was a bit of dour and bullying twat.But she probably just got used to been with him. But she was waiting for someone like a Tim to come along and make her probably get out of the rut she was in.

Plenty of Dawns out there who don't end up not finding their Tim's, end up having a few kids and a bad marriage or been left to been single mothers by guys like Lee.